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If the promise of working for TikTok can make you dream, the reality is far from being idyllic. While the most popular social network of the moment recorded $4 billion in revenue in 2021, and expects to hit $12 billion this year, many employees looked back on their grueling journey.
Harsh working conditions at TikTok
An investigation published on May 7 in The Wall Street Journal shows the difficult working conditions endured by people working in TikTok’s Los Angeles offices. In 2020, the U.S. branch of the social networking giant had nearly 1,500 employees and said it wanted to increase that number to 10,000.
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In the U.S., employees are primarily concerned with transforming products and features, often drawn from Douyin, for the U.S. audience and advertising market. However, to achieve the goals set by ByteDance, the parent company of the social network, many sacrifices are made. Among them, weight fluctuation, lack of sleep, non-existent free time, etc.
This is not the first time that the working conditions at TikTok make waves. In May 2021, employees of TikTok Europe, based in the UK, denounced the use of “996” management. This method, mainly used in China, takes its name from the Chinese working hours: from 9am to 9pm, 6 days a week.
Former employees have reported being forced to attend an average of 85 hours of meetings each week. The work times overlap with their rest time, forcing them to attend meetings with their Chinese colleagues on weekends. As a result, work weeks begin on Sunday afternoon, when it is already Monday morning in China. ” The way TikTok treats its employees is the exact opposite of the values the social network advocates “, said internally Dylan Juhnke, an employee who handled partnerships for two years, before resigning.
TikTok revealed to Wall Street Journal that adjustments have been made in their work culture to achieve their desire to ” build and promote a team that is equipped to support our growing global community “. The changes made were not specified.
The same problem for moderators
At the end of March, former moderators of the platform filed a complaint against TikTok accusing it of not having sufficiently protected them from the videos they were facing.
These former employees pointed to long workdays spent analyzing thousands of videos, some of which were “ highly toxic and extremely disturbing “. The company would favor quantity over quality by imposing heavy quotas: 80% accuracy in decisions after a 25-second review for each video.
They also pointed to the lack of psychological support and said they signed a non-disclosure agreement forbidding them to share with their loved ones what they endure.
This is not the first time the companies behind the social networking giants have been criticized for their working conditions. However, these are improving over the years. November 2021, ByteDance had already lightened its employees’ working hours after several protests. It remains to be seen whether its TikTok branch will continue this trend.
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